Waste-chute.



G. A. HUFMBYER.

WASTE OHUTE.

APPLIOATION nun) SEPT 11, 1906.

m m m w M N M 2 I v P 0 U W E W//////////// V///// N t 1 1 V/// M/////////%%7//////v/// w E 5 m a 6 m z w E E M w 9 Q GEORGE A. HOFMEYER, OF UNDERCLIFF, NEW JERSEY.

WASTE-CHUTE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 9, 1909.

Application filed. September 11, 1906. Serial No. 334,107.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Gnonon A. HorMm'nR, a citizen of the United States, residing at Undercliff, in the county of Bergen and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Wfaste- Chutes, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to that class of chutes which are used in large department stores, factories and similar buildings as a means of transporting the waste paper, sweepings and other refuse matter from the various floors to the basement. It will be understood that this waste matter must be swept up and disposed of in such a manner as to not only get it out of the way, but also to avoid any possibility of a fire caused by its becoming ignited, either from an outside source or by spontaneous combustion.

The objects of the invention are therefore to secure a fire proof chute in which Wm it can do no harm; 0 provide means or introducing waste to said chute which-shall preclude its transmitting fire to the outside while being inserted; to this end to provide interlocking doors at the opposite ends of a hopper, one of which doors is adapted to beheld closed by opening of the other door and is free to open and close when said other door is closed; to combine in such a construction doors which normally close by gravity; to secure a simple and inexpensive construction and one which shall be at the same time eflicient and not liable to get out of order, and to obtain other advantages and results as may be brought out by the following description.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, in which like numerals of reference indi cate correspondin parts in each of the several drawings, %igure 1 is a side elevation of a ortion of a chute of my im roved construction and the floor of an a jacent room; Fig. 2 is a horizontal cross section of the chute on line as, Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the to of the chute, the walls thereof being part ly broken away to disclose an interior fusible link, and Fig. 4c is a plan of the same; Figs. 5 and 6 are ver tical sections of the chute on line y, Fig. 2, showing respectively, the outer door opened to charge the hopper, and the inner door open to discharge the hopper.

In said drawings, 1 indicates the chute proper which comprises a passageway of an suitable shape and construction, preferab y fire proof, extending from the basement or other collecting point for the waste up past the different floors or places of collection to the roof or other exposure. The walls of the chute are smooth and without projections on the inside so as to facilitate passage of the waste therethrough, and the top of the chute, which preferably extends above the roof, is slanted or beveled otf and provided with a cover 2 hinged at one edge, as at 3. A weighted arm 4 normally throws said hinged cover 2 open, as shown in outline in Fig. 3, but it is not desired that said cover shall stand open except when there is a fire in the chute, the smoke and gases from which should escape. At other times the cover 2 should remain closed to shed rain or snow and prevent such a draft up through the chute as will-disturb the paper and other waste inserted therein from properly passing downward to the basement. To this end therefore the cover 2 is attached to a bracket 5 on the inside of the chute by a connection which includes a fusible link 6, said connection being adjusted through a door 7 in the side of the chute for that purpose. Under normal conditions therefore the door 2 is held closed, but in case of a fire in the chute the heat therefrom will melt the link 6 and release the cover 2 so that the same will automatically open and vent the chute.

At any floor of the building where it is desired to establish communication with the chute, an opening 8 is formed in the side thereof, and a hopper 9 arranged to project on an incline upward from the lower edge of said opening and outward into the room, to a suitable distance up from the floor 10. This hopper 9, which therefore serves to close the opening 8 in the chute, is provided at its top with an inclined door 11 hinged at its upper edge, as at 12 and adapted to swing upward, as lndicated in Fig. 5. This door 11 closes the mouth of the ho per when dropped or lowered, as shown in Figs. 1 and 6, and must be lifted up or raised in order to charge the hopper, as will be understood.

The inner door 13 of my improved construction is hin ed at the upper edge of the opening 8 in t e chute so as to normally hang or lie in said opening and close the same. Preferabl such hingin is at the outer or front e ge of the opening 8, as at 14, so that the door will be closed by gravity waste of any kind.

before it reaches a vertical position and thus tend to close more positively. This inner door til, it will be understood swings inward or into the interior of the chute, while the outer door it swings outward, and both doors are made of tire proof material, prelerably sheet metal, to correspond with the hopper t).

()n the outer side of the door 13 is a stud or post 1.1, which pivotally receives the lower end of the lever 10 t'ulerumed, as at 17, to a bracket lti upon the outer wall of the chute above the opening 8, but still with in the hopper U. Obviously by swii'iging the upper arm of the lever 10 outward away from the chute, the inner door 13 will be opened, as shown in Fig. (l, and to this end the outer door 11 is provided with a slot 19 through which said upper arm of the lever 16 projects. Said slot is so located, that when the outer door 11 is closed the lever 16 can be thrown forward as desired, to open the inner door, but when the outer door is tipped up or opened wide, the forward end of the slot 19 engages the lever 16 and serves as a stop to prevent the same from moving forward, as shown in Fig. 6 more particularly.

A catch 20 of any suitable construction is provided to hook over the door 11 when the same is opened wide and hold the same in elevated position. The inner door 13 Ctt1inot then be opened or moved at all, and the hopper can be safely charged with paper or hen this charging is done, the outer door 11 is closed, which releases the lever 16 so that the inner door 13 can be opened and the contents of the hopper allowed to slide into the chute. Perfect safety is thereby insured since one door is always normally closed while the other is open.

It will be noted that the two doors 11 and 13 are not connected so that one cannot move without moving the other, but are capable of independent movement. Either the outer or the 1nner door can, if the other door is closed, be opened and shut without changing in any way the position of the other door. hen one door is opened it locks the other door against movement, and when said firstmentioned door is closed it releases the other door, but these words locking and releasing do not mean opening and closing. Neither door in closing has any tendency to open the other door, but simply unlocks or releases said other door so that it can be opened ifdesired. The normal tendency of both doors is to remain always closed at the same time.

A sprinkler of any ordinary and well known construction can be arranged in an upper art of the chute if desired to we down the contents thereof in ase And it will further be r. erstoo improved construction can be utilized in apartment houses for the collection of ashes, or in general may be applied to any purpose for which it. is adapted.

it will be understood that till term hopper as employed herein designates any ltind til a space between outer and inner doors which is adapted to receive the waste mat ter, and the term chute is used without modification to indicate what would more strictly be called the ehute proper or passageway l. l urthermore it is obvious that my improved construction can be utilized for the transmission of any hind of matter, other than waste, to whitilfiffi'iidiiiitfilf Various modifications in the detail construction above described may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention, such for instance as would vary the particular stage ot opening at which one door loelts the other, as shown in my application Serial No. 334,1(l8, tiled herewith, and 1 therefore do not intend the following claims to be limited except as the state of the art may require.

Having thus described the invention, what I claim as new is:

1. The combination with a chute, ot' a hopper, outer and inner doors for said hopper adapted to move each independent of the other, and means for locking one door in fixed position by opening of the other door and releasing said first mentioned door by closing of the other door.

2. The combination with a chute, of a hopper, outer and inner doors for said hop per adapted to move each independent of the other, and means for holding one door closed by opening of the other door and releasing said first mentioned door by closing of the other door.

3. The combination with a chute, of a hopper, outer and inner doors for said hopper adapted to move each independent of the other, and means for locking the inner door in fixed position by opening of the outer door and releasing said inner door by closing of the outer door.

t. The combination with a chute, of a hopper, outer and inner doors for said hopper adapted to move each independent of the other, and means for holding the inner door closed by oiening of the outer door and releasing sai inner door by closing of the outer door.

5. The combination with a chute, of a hopper, outer and inner doors for said hopper, a eontrollin lever for one of said doors, and means for ocking said lever by opening of the other door and releasing said first mentioned door by closing of the other door.

6. The combination with a chute, of a hopper, outer and inner doors for said hopper, a controlling lever for the inner door, and means for locking said lever by opening of the outer door and releasing said inner door by closing of the other door.

7. The combination with a chute, of a hopper, outer and inner doors for said hop per both of which normally close by gravity, and means for locking one door by opening of the other door and releasing said first mentioned door by closing of the other door.

8. The combination with a chute, of a hopper, outer and inner doors for said hopper both of which normally close by gravity, and means for holding one door closed by opening of the other door and releasing said first mentioned door by closing of the other door.

9. The combination with a chute, of a hopper, outer and inner doors for said hopper both of which normally close by ravity, and means for locking the inner door by opening of the outer door and releasing said inner door by closing of the outer door.

10. The combination with a chute, of a hopper, an inner door for said ho per, an outer door for said hopper provi ed with a slot, and a lever projecting outwardly through said slot for operating the inner door, the slot enabling the lever to be operated when said outer door is in closed position and locking said lever against movement when the outer door is open.

11. The combination with a waste chute, having an opening, an outwardly projecting hopper at said opening, an inner door arranged in said openin and an outer door for said hopper provi ed with a slot; of a lever fulerumed within said hopper with one end adapted to operate the inner door and the other end projecting outwardly through the slot of the outer door, said slot enabling the lever to be operated when said outer door is in closed position and locking said lever against movement when the outer door is open.

12. The combination with a chute having a lateral opening, of an inclined hopper extending upwardly and outwardly from said opening, an inner door hinged at the top of said opening, an outer door hinged at the upper edge of the open end of the hop )er and provided with a slot and a lever ulcrumed within said hopper with one end pivoted to said inner door and the other end extending out of the hopper through said slot, the slot enabling the lever to be op erated when said outer door is in closed position and locking it against movement when the outer door is open.

13. The combination with a chute having a lateral opening, of a ho per extending upwardly and outwardly rom said opening, an inner door hinged at its upper edge in said opening, an outer door hinged to the said hopper and provided with a slot, and a lever fulerumed within said hopper above the said opening with one end pivotally conneeted to said inner door and the other end extending out of the hopper through said slot, the slot enabling the lever to be operated when said outer door is in closed position and locking it against movement when the outer door is open.

GEORGE A. HOFMEYER.

itnesses GARRETT LUCAS, G. Boson Knrsnn. 

